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Ben Belmans and Dieter Van Roy don’t require a big introduction on Served By Soberon anymore, these two icons of Belgian (and international) Mixology have been presented in articles on Tiki Cocktails, Boilermakers and their three Bottle Aged Cocktails.

Today, for my series of Rum Ramblings, I’ll be dealing with the rum they released as a part of their own BelRoy’s line-up, which consists of the three bottle-aged cocktails previously mentioned, a gin and a vodka. The purpose of their cocktails has always been obvious, as their bar (BelRoy’s Bijou, Graaf Van Egmontstraat 20, 2000 Antwerpen) has been known for serving a wide array of bottle-aged cocktails, yet why decide to release three spirits while your bar is already stocked with the most beautiful spirits the world of distillates has to offer? (Don’t take this statement with a grain of salt btw, their backbar is instant droolage). Ben answered my questions while I was sitting at his bar, after I just received a one-on-one masterclass earlier that day.

“During the development of the spirits we were looking for the ultimate balance, versatility and consistency. Our Rum shouldn’t just match a Daiquiri, she would need to be a perfect fit for a Mai Tai or other Rum Cocktails as well. A requirement our gin and vodka also had to meet. We wanted to have spirits at hand which perfectly fitted the flavor profile of the cocktails we’re serving.”

The vodka and gin are distilled by Ben himself, he followed a course of master-distilling and uses the equipment at VdS distillery in Lede. The rum isn’t distilled by them, neither is it aged here. Ben: “The yeast strains used for the fermentation, which creates the flavors we needed in our rum only flourishes in the Tropics. It’s that typical ‘funk’ we’re looking for, which can’t be achieved here in our climate. That’s why we decided to create a custom blend of Carribean rums in stead of creating the distillate ourselves.” BelRoy’s custom blend is composed of rums from Trinidad (both a young and 5yo expression) and Jamaica (high ester pot still distillates from Hampden, Monymusk and Worthy Park). The final result after cutting is a 40% ABV bottling. “Our rum offers us everything we’re looking for in a rum: It’s clearly fruity, has a layered body and those pot still Jamaicans are flavor bombs which add a unique touch.”

Tasting notes:
Upon smelling I’m greeted with funkiness. In the nose there’s a tropical fruitblend, accompanied by the aroma of Colombia Coffeebeans, there’s the slightest touch of saltiness. On the palate the coffeebeans stay apparent, though in flavor it seems to be heating up, warm coffee with a whiff of vanilla. Caramelised banana and grilled pineapple. A delicious buttery feeling surrounds my tongue. The finish is medium long, a tad dryer and leaves a tingle on the lips.

Recipes:
At home I started to experiment with the spirits myself. There’s a brief description of the three cocktails here, the recipe itself can be found on my Instagram page by clicking the photos.

I combined the rum with Giffard’s Carribean Pineapple, Lime juice, Angostura Bitters, Simple Syrup and topped ith with Erasums Bond Dry Ginger. The tropical notes of the rum got strengthened by the liqueur and the heat of the ginger connected everything to a great refreshing Tiki drink, loosely based on Joe Scialom’s ‘Suffering Bastard’.

I combined the gin, which is distilled using only fresh juniper berries and fresh peel of the best lemons and oranges, with Sloe Gin, Fresh fig liqueur and Angostura Bitters. Garnished wih rosemary this tasted like a liquid warm Meditteranean summer night.

Of course I also created a drink with the vodka. The Belgian Rye in the distillate adds a velvet spiciness that pairs wonderfully with citrus. I chose to combine it with Grand Marnier, lemon juice and several dashes of grapefruit bitters, the finishing touch being homemade grenadine.

Ben and Dieter know what they’ve got themselves into. Their vision is clear and fully focused on being versatile, correct and qualitative. Both the spirits and bottle-aged cocktails serve their purpose: Pleasing the senses. No wonder I’m writing this while sipping their bottled ‘El Presidente’.

Disclaimer: (1) The BelRoy’s products were received as samples to create drinks with, all three recipes were created by myself. (2) Nothing in this article can be copied without permission and explicit mention of ‘Served By Soberon’

Gepubliceerd door Served By Soberon // Matthias

I create drinks, explore flavors, and have fun writing and taking pictures. some call it home bartenders, others mixologists, a third person will call it a content creator or even an influencer. And while they're all discussing, I'm sampling new products, working on new drinks and photographing them. Take a seat, have a drink, be inspired.
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